(a)

1. (1)

   1. (A) To qualify as an approved political action committee, the committee is required to register with the Secretary of State within fifteen (15) days after accepting contributions during a calendar year that exceed five hundred dollars ($500) in the aggregate.
   2. (B) Registration for a political action committee shall be active unless the committee has requested a termination of its registration.
   3. (C) Except as provided in subdivision (a)(1)(D) of this section, registration shall be on forms provided by the Secretary of State, and the contents therein shall be verified by an affidavit of an officer of the committee.
   4. (D)

(b) (b) An electronic registration shall be verified by an officer of the committee.

1. (ii) The Arkansas Ethics Commission shall approve a format used by the Secretary of State for registering as a committee to ensure that all required information is requested.

   1. (iii) A format used by the Secretary of State for registering as a committee in electronic form shall provide that a registration filed in electronic form be rejected by that office if it omits the name, street address, or telephone number of an individual designated as the resident agent for the committee.

      1. (iv) The official website of the Secretary of State shall allow for searches of committee registration information filed in electronic form.

2. (2)

   1. (A) The committee shall designate a resident agent who shall be an individual who resides in the State of Arkansas.
   2. (B) No contribution shall be accepted from a committee and no expenditure shall be made by a committee that has not registered and does not have a resident agent.

3. (3)

   1. (A) No approved political action committee shall accept a contribution from a prohibited political action committee as defined in 7 CAR § 5-101(7) of this part.

   2. (B) It shall be unlawful for a prohibited political action committee as defined in 7 CAR § 5-101(7) of this part to make a contribution to:

      1. (i) A ballot question committee;
      2. (ii) A legislative question committee;
      3. (iii) A political party;
      4. (iv) A county political party committee;
      5. (v) An approved political action committee; or
      6. (vi) A prohibited political action committee.

4. (4)

   1. (A) An out-of-state committee, including a federal committee, shall be required to comply with the registration and reporting provisions of this part if the committee contributes more than five hundred dollars ($500) in a calendar year to candidates, campaign committees, ballot question committees, legislative question committees, political parties, county political party committees, or other political action committees within the State of Arkansas.

   2. (B) This section shall not apply to:

      1. (i) The national committee of any political party that is registered with the Federal Election Commission;
      2. (ii) Any federal candidate committee that is registered with the Federal Election Commission;
      3. (iii) Funds which a subordinate committee of the national committee of any political party that is registered with the Federal Election Commission transfers to the federal account of an organized political party as defined in Arkansas Code § 7-1-101; or
      4. (iv) Funds which a political action committee that is registered with the Federal Election Commission transfers to the federal account of an organized political party as defined in Arkansas Code § 7-1-101.

(b) The registration form of an approved political action committee shall contain the following information:

1. (1)

   1. (A) The name, address, and, where available, phone number of the committee and the name, address, phone number, and place of employment of each of its officers.
   2. (B) If the committee’s name is an acronym, then both it and the words forming the acronym shall be disclosed;
2. (2) The professional, business, trade, labor, or other interests represented by the committee, including any individual business, organization, association, corporation, labor organization, or other group or firm whose interests will be represented by the committee;
3. (3) The full name and street address, city, state, and zip code of each financial institution the committee uses for purposes of receiving contributions or making expenditures within the State of Arkansas;
4. (4) The name, street address, and telephone number of the individual designated as the resident agent for the committee and, if the registration form is filed in paper form, a written acceptance of designation as a resident agent;
5. (5) A certification by a committee officer, under penalty of false swearing, that the information provided on the registration is true and correct; and

6. (6) A clause submitting the committee to the jurisdiction of the State of Arkansas for all purposes related to compliance with the provisions of Arkansas Code § 7-6-201 et seq.

   1. (c)
7. (1) When a committee makes a change to any of the information required in subsection (b) of this section, an amendment is required to be filed within ten (10) days to reflect the change.

8. (2) A committee failing to file an amendment shall be subject to a late filing fee of ten dollars ($10.00) for each day the change is not filed.

   1. (d) Registration with the Secretary of State under this section may be filed in paper form if:
9. (1) The political action committee does not have access to the technology necessary to submit registration in electronic form;
10. (2) Submitting registration in electronic form would constitute a substantial hardship for the political action committee; and
11. (3) The political action committee submits a notarized affidavit that complies with Arkansas Code § 7-6-231.